Use The Force [Your Name Here]

For some people this time of year is a time for reflection and planning. A time to unwind and spend time with family and friends.

For me it’s a time to catchup on some Star Wars. I’ve been a bit spoilt this year with the release of The Force Awakens, and as a result my brain is a bit overloaded on The Force.

But that’s ok, because there’s plenty to take away from Jedi teachings. The Jedi path of overcoming fear, trusting their deepest convictions, learning to be patient and mindful of their thinking strongly parallels the entrepreneurial journey.

Take a look at some of these quotes from Master Jedi, Yoda – to see what I mean:

Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.

For many people fear is a constant companion. Fear of losing one’s job. Fear of failure. Fear of not having enough money. Fear of losing some important relationship. Even fear of success! Fear prevents us moving from where we are to where we should be. It chains and binds us, leading – as Yoda points out – to anger and suffering.

More often than not though, the thing you’re afraid of will never even happen. And even if it does, it won’t be anywhere near as bad as you think it will.

One great way to overcome fear is by practicing gratefulness. Acknowledging all of the things and people you have in your life helps keep things in perspective. Some of your fears may relate to losing those things though, so…

Attachment leads to jealously. The shadow of greed, that is. The fear of loss is a path to the Dark Side.

The true Jedi lives a life of simplicity and doesn’t become attached to people or things. Obviously you need to apply this one with a dash of wisdom. Probably (if you have them) your partner and children are quite happy to remain attached. The thing to think about though is whether your attachment is preventing you from doing something you know you should be.

If you’re stuck in a career you hate or doing some other kind of thing out of a sense of duty to someone else in your life – and if it’s blocking you from doing the thing you love, that’s a problem. You may fear the consequences of making changes and following your desire to do other things, particularly in the areas of relationship or finance, but you have to be true to your feelings.

You must unlearn what you have learned.

Being true to thine own self may mean leaving behind some other deeply held beliefs and convictions. How do you feel about money for instance? What kind of work ethic do you have? Letting go of things you think you already know about what business is and the kinds of activities you need to perform on a daily basis to grow your business to where you want it to be can be as hard or as simple as you want to make it.

Trying to figure it all out yourself is going to make things hard. There’s nothing wrong with hard, but it’s not the Jedi way.

Always two there are, no more, no less. A master and an apprentice.

If you want to succeed on your path as an entrepreneur, you need a master to train you in the ways of The Force and to make sure you’re not straying from it towards the dark side. Training can help you to:

Get clear on where exactly it is you’re heading

Deal with any self imposed obstacles preventing you from getting there

Devise a plan of action(s) to get you from where you are now to where you want to be

Provide you with the skills you need to achieve your objectives

Keep you on track and accountable for your achievements or lack of them

Patience you must have my young padawan.

The true Jedi entrepreneur must have patience. Success rarely comes overnight. Instead it’s the cumulative result of many small successes and key daily activities repeated over and over and over again until they become the foundations of a great business. For this reason:

A Jedi must have the deepest commitment, the most serious mind. This one a long time have I watched. All his life has he looked away… to the future, to the horizon. Never his mind on where he was. Hmm? What he was doing. Hmph. Adventure. Heh. Excitement. Heh. A Jedi craves not these things.

The Jedi entrepreneur must be completely focused, completely committed to the journey. To win through in the bad times as well as the good. Not looking back, nor too far ahead. But focused on the thing they need to do right now to keep their business moving forward in the direction it needs to go. Use these core Jedi philosphies to steer clear of the Dark Side of The Force:

Resist fear, don’t give in to anger

Be mindful of your thoughts

Trust your feelings

Be patient, stay committed

And if you need a Jedi [entrepreneur] Master to help point you in the right direction, hit the reply button.